


waiting to kill more time with you

by thecrescendo



Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band)
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Meet the Family, Secret Relationship, also cute kids and annoying family members
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-26
Updated: 2016-07-26
Packaged: 2018-07-26 21:30:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7591171
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thecrescendo/pseuds/thecrescendo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>“Michael, dear, what brings you here?” Luke heard Liz ask from behind him, almost startling him. Zoe looked back at Liz and then ran back towards Luke, grabbing his hand.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>It was unbelievable how Michael managed to look embarrassed like he had no idea that he was crashing a family gathering. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to intrude. I didn’t know you had company. Just wanted to see Luke, is all.”</i>
</p><p>
  <i>He already expected for Liz to brush off Michael’s statement and invite him inside to eat with them. “Don’t worry, you’re practically family. Come in and join us,” she said, pulling Michael inside and almost dragging him to where Luke was.</i>
</p><p>or Luke thinks it would be a good idea for Michael to test his chemistry with Luke's family during a family dinner but things don't always go as planned.</p>
            </blockquote>





	waiting to kill more time with you

**Author's Note:**

> So this was supposed to be posted on Luke’s birthday (despite not being a birthday fic) but well, life happened. At least I got to work on this longer.
> 
> Also, with the mention of Luke’s birthday, the plot for ‘[Another Sin](http://archiveofourown.org/works/3253364)’ started on Luke’s 20th birthday! So go and read that if you want, I'm going to update in a few days.
> 
> This is, for the most part, a sequel to ‘[i wanna shout it from the rooftops](http://archiveofourown.org/works/5865442)’ but it can stand on its own. I do recommend still reading that if you haven’t yet.

As Luke gazed at the top of Michael’s head, that was leaning on his shoulder, all he could do was smile at how elated he always felt whenever Michael was near. They’ve known each other for a long time and it should have faded by now. But Luke realized that as the years passed, the feeling only grew stronger and it felt a good kind of different every time.

Smiling to himself, he relaxed and rested his head against Michael’s. Maybe what he was sensing was something that is yet to be explained. Even with all the confusion, he felt lucky to be feeling it.

A few hours passed before Luke woke up to his buzzing phone. Confused, since he knew his phone was in airplane mode, he took his phone from his pocket to check whatever notification it had.

_‘3 days to family dinner’_

Luke’s eyes grew wide, completely forgetting about the event. Silently, he thanked Ashton for telling him to get the app that reminded him of his responsibilities. Most of the time, there were too many things going on in his life that he barely remembers what he’s supposed to do.

Thinking back, his mum told him about it a week before their current flight. Liz told him it was just a coincidence that it was after he had arrived home but Luke knew otherwise. She knew his schedule more than he did and she most likely planned it and the rest of his family just agreed to go.

Don’t get him wrong, he missed his family like crazy but mostly just his parents and brothers. He wasn’t exactly that keen on seeing his aunts and cousins who would likely pester him about being “a huge, mega rockstar” or worse, about his "doomed love life".

He softly chuckled at the thought of his family thinking he was single when he’s been in a relationship for almost half a decade. He looked back at the object of his affection, whose head was now resting against the side of the plane. When he gazed back between them, under the armrest, he can’t help the huge grin he had when he saw their fingers still intertwined.

Suddenly an idea struck him. It wasn’t the best plan, he had to admit, but it was something.

"Mike," he whispered, nudging the sleeping man beside him. "Michael, wake up before I forget what I wanna say."

Michael grunted and then leaned back against Luke, pressing his nose against Luke’s shoulder. “What?” he asked and Luke was glad Michael didn’t seem too bothered that he was woken up.

“Sorry for waking you up,” Luke said, briefly squeezing Michael’s hand.

“S’fine, what did you want to tell me?”

Knowing the lights were dim enough and everyone around them was most likely asleep, Luke pulled their hands from under the armrest and kissed Michael's knuckles before speaking again. He knew Michael was a sucker for affection just a few minutes after he'd woken up. "Mum said there'd be relatives coming over the day after we get home."

Michael hummed in response. "Okay, that's great, I know you miss them," Michael said and then he looked up at Luke. "But you had to wake me up for this because?"

All of a sudden, Luke was hesitant to tell Michael about it. The way he had phrased his next sentence wasn’t exactly nice. He hadn't realized he'd been silent for too long until Michael pulled his hand to his lap and played with his fingers.

“Babe?”

Luke shook his head to regain his thoughts, then breathed deeply to prepare himself on what he wanted to say.

"Sorry, I just," he started, closing his eyes to take another deep breath. He was being pathetic, he knew. It was Michael he was talking to, for heaven's sake. He’d said way worse things to him.

“What? It’s not like you wanted me to come over, right?” Michael said, followed by light laughter. His laughter died down when he realized Luke fell silent again. “You want me to come over, don’t you?” he said and Luke was glad Michael had said it instead of him.

Luke nodded and he finally opened his eyes to look back at Michael. "But like, ugh, I don't know how to phrase this," he said, using his free hand to pinch the bridge of his nose. "Like a test run?"

"Test run?" Michael asked, sitting straighter but kept his hand in Luke's. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Ugh, I knew it was gonna sound bad.”

“Not really but I want you to tell me what you’re thinking about so we’ll be on the same page.”

Luke groaned while trying to properly construct his next few sentences. He took a deep breath when he felt he could finally explain to Michael properly. “Okay, how many weeks left before we tell our families about us?” was what he decided to start with.

“A little less than five weeks, I think.”

“Yeah and like, we already know how you get along with mum, dad, Ben, and Jack, right? I just, I don’t know. I think it will be interesting to see you with other people in my family, maybe?”

Before he could explain further, he felt Michael nuzzle his head back against Luke’s neck. “Hmmm, yeah, I’ll come over.”

“Really?”

“What, did you think I’d say no to that?” Michael asked, placing a kiss against what he can reach with minimal movement.

Luke shook his head. “Not really, just thought you’d think it was a stupid idea,” he said, keeping himself from shrugging as Michael’s head was still resting on it.

“It is,” Michael said, followed by a chuckle. “But you starting a YouTube channel was a stupid idea too and look where that got you.”

“Whatever, just go back to sleep. I’ll wake you up when we need to eat.”

*

Luke woke up to the strong aroma of food being cooked downstairs. A quick look at his door and he saw that it was ajar  because of his failure to close it properly the night before.

Knowing it was pointless to try and go back to sleep, he pushed the sheets aside and stood up with a groan. Although with the thought that Michael was going to spend the day with him and his family, mostly him, it gave him more motivation to start the day and go down to greet his mother in the kitchen.

“Hey mum,” he said while approaching the kitchen island. “Anything for breakfast?”

Liz hummed in response as she opened the oven to check whatever it was she had cooking in there. “There’s some cereal in the cupboard but there’s also some toaster waffles. You can have either,” she then said, now stirring some sauce. “Sorry I couldn’t make you a proper breakfast, hun.”

“It’s fine, mum,” he said, smiling at the almost frantic Liz in front of him. “I can’t wait for the food later.” He then placed a kiss on her cheek when he passed her after grabbing a bowl and a spoon.

Luke was already settled at the dining table and quietly eating his cereal when Liz spoke again. “I told them to come over at around 3, so please be ready by 2:30 at most.”

He nodded as he looked at the wall clock. It was only 11 so he had plenty of time. “I’ll be ready by 1,” he said while also mentally telling himself to text Michael to get there at least a few minutes after everyone had arrived.

After he placed the bowl in the sink, he excused himself and sprinted back upstairs. The first thing he did was grab his phone and messaged Michael.

 _[Sent]_ Are you up?

 _[Received]_ Barely

 _[Received]_ Sucks waking up without you next to me

 _[Sent]_ You’re a sap

 _[Received]_ Shit, that message wasn’t supposed to be for you. Oops

 _[Sent]_ Shut up

 _[Sent]_ Moving on. Be here by 3:30

 _[Sent]_ You didn’t forget, did you?

 _[Received]_ Of course I didn’t

 _[Received]_ Even planned an outfit last night

 _[Sent]_ Dork

 _[Sent]_ See you later

*

The first person to arrive rang the doorbell around 2:43 and Luke wasn’t even fazed. He knew his family has always been proud of being punctual. If he didn’t look like a mirror image of Jack, he would’ve convinced himself that he was adopted at his habit of arriving late.

Slowly, the number of people started increasing and Luke was tired waiting by the door to open it and greet them. As soon as Jack and Celeste arrived, he immediately gave the task to Jack, ignoring any of his brother’s protests.

Everyone was in the backyard but Luke stayed in the living room, wanting to be the one to open the door for Michael when he arrived. He was going through channels when he felt someone plop themselves beside him. Startled, he looked to his side and saw a head of blonde hair tied into pigtails.

“Lewi!” Zoe exclaimed, hugging Luke’s side while also snuggling her face against his chest. “I missed you!” she added, trying to squeeze Luke tighter despite her arms not enough to go around him.

Instantly, he pulled Zoe on his lap and hugged her back. As much as he hated playing favorites, he always had a soft spot for Zoe. Hopefully, their other cousins wouldn’t notice. “Missed you too, kid.”

Zoe shook her head. “I bet I missed you more,” she challenged before pulling away from Luke. She crossed her arms and shook her head again. “We saw you on the TV a lot and I got sad because I knew I couldn’t visit you here.”

Luke would be lying if he said what Zoe told him didn’t have any effect on him. He felt his heart both double in size and break at his cousin’s admission. “Okay, you did miss me more,” he said, reaching up to slightly mess with her hair. “You know you can call me, right?”

“Yes but every time I remember to call you mum would say it was late where you are and you were already asleep.”

Solemnly, Luke nodded in understanding but before he could respond, the doorbell rang. Without looking at the clock, he already had a feeling it was Michael at the door. Unfortunately, before he could get up, Zoe was already running to get it.

“Stay right there, Lewi. I’ll get it,” she said, pushing Luke down before she ran out of the living room.

With the sound of the door opening, he stood up and walked closer to see if his assumption was correct. He was proven right when he heard Zoe ask Michael who he was.

“Michael, dear, what brings you here?” Luke heard Liz ask from behind him, almost startling him. Zoe looked back at Liz and then ran back towards Luke, grabbing his hand.

It was unbelievable how Michael managed to look embarrassed like he had no idea that he was crashing a family gathering. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to intrude. I didn’t know you had company. Just wanted to see Luke, is all.”

He already expected for Liz to brush off Michael’s statement and invite him inside to eat with them. “Don’t worry, you’re practically family. Come in and join us,” she said, pulling Michael inside and almost dragging him to where Luke was.

Luke was sure the blush on his boyfriend’s cheeks was genuine this time, especially with Liz acknowledging him as part of the family. He gave Michael a small smile when they were stood side by side.

He was too busy keeping his gaze on Michael that Luke forgot the child that was still holding his hand. His attention was brought back to Zoe when she started pulling on his hand. “Lewi, who’s Michael?” she asked, her eyes shifting from Luke to Michael.

It was understandable that Zoe doesn’t particularly know who Michael was at that moment. She was probably too excited from seeing Luke that his bandmates were completely erased from her mind.

“You don’t remember Michael?” Luke asked, crouching down to Zoe’s level as he also pushed Michael to step closer to the little girl. “He’s part of the band, remember?”

Zoe’s eyes grew wide as she covered her mouth with her hands. “I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you.”

“Hey, it’s okay,” Michael said with an encouraging smile, bending down a bit so he could look at her properly. “You must be Zoe.” She nodded. “Luke’s told me so many stories about you. He talks about you a lot.”

Luke’s heart swelled once again when he saw Zoe’s eyes light up at Michael’s statement. “Really?” she asked, a large grin adorning her face. Then suddenly her lips dropped to a frown. “I think my friends are tired of my stories about Lewi,” she added.

It was Michael’s turn to crouch down when the slight dip in the child’s mood became apparent. “That’s because you’re telling the wrong people your stories,” he started, talking slowly so she could understand him clearly. “See, I’m Luke’s best friend so I love listening to his stories. That’s what best friends do.”

“Will I have a best friend when I grow up?”

“Of course you will, kiddo,” Luke answered before he felt Zoe wrap her arms around his neck.

When she pulled away from Luke, she turned to look at Michael. “May I hug you too?”

“Yeah, I love hugs!” Michael said, opening his arms for Zoe.

After the show of affection, Zoe stepped away from both men and ran to the backyard without another word. Luke shook his head at his little cousin as he stood up and Michael followed suit.

“Wanna go up to my room for a while?” Luke asked, already starting to climb the stairs.

Michael fake gasped while pressing a hand against his chest. “With all these people downstairs? I’m appalled, Lukey. I’m not that kind of boy,” he teased but he was still following Luke upstairs.

“You’re so annoying.”

“But look at that, you’re still in love with me.”

Luke rolled his eyes as he opened his bedroom door, closing it as soon as Michael was inside. “Details,” he said, followed by a scoff.

Michael shook his head while stepping closer to Luke. “Missed you,” he said, wrapping his arms around the taller man’s neck. “It’s been two days.”

It was on the tip of Luke’s tongue to tease Michael but he couldn’t deny that he had missed him too. He placed his hands on Michael’s hip and pulled him closer. “Me too,” he said before bending down to hide his face against Michael’s neck. “Wanna spend the night at yours,” he added.

“Tonight?”

“Won’t Karen and Daryl mind that I’m there?”

Michael shook his head then kissed the side of Luke’s head. “Nah, I have a feeling it’s a date night. I saw mum looking through her dresses before I got out of the house.”

“Good,” Luke said, reluctantly pulling away from Michael’s neck. “Let’s lie down,” he added, pulling Michael towards the bed. The older man followed without hesitation.

They lied in silence for a while, basking in the feeling of being alone together in the comfort of Luke’s childhood bedroom.

“What if they don’t like me?” Michael asked, tracing patterns against Luke’s chest.

“Zoe seems to like you already.”

“Sure, leave the judging to the child. The adults will obviously like me based on her,” Michael retorted. “By the way, why are we hiding in your room? I thought this was a test run.”

Luke groaned as he pushed himself up to sit and rest against the headboard of his bed. “But Mikey,” he pleaded, sticking his bottom lip out for good measure. “Just wanna cuddle,” he added, making grabby hands at the other man who already started walking towards the door.

“Come on, you’re the one who wanted to do this.”

“Yeah, but then I saw how you looked like on my bed again and I’m feeling nostalgic,” he said, keeping his gaze set downward as he already knew the expression Michael had. “Shut up, I’m allowed to be sappy in my own home.”

Michael sighed before he returned to the side of the bed. “If I promise not to tease the living shit out of you, can we please start with the torture? This is just prolonging my agony,” he said, grabbing Luke’s hand and started tugging him up.

“We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to. I can just tell mum you had to go home,” Luke said, stepping in front of Michael to stop him from any further movement.

While it would be beneficial to already see the chemistry between Michael and his relatives, Luke knew pushing it wouldn’t guarantee anything good if Michael wasn’t ready.

“Babe,” Michael said, placing his hands on Luke’s cheeks to squish his face. “I’m already here so we might as well go on with it, yeah? I’ll be fine, I promise.” With that, Michael gave Luke a peck before stepping around him and open the door.

As they started their descent, Luke saw Zoe sitting at the foot of the stairs straight away.

“Were you waiting for me to come down?” Luke asked, sitting beside the little girl with a hand on her back.

Zoe shook her head then turned to look at Michael. “I was waiting for you,” she said, pointing at the older man. “I have a question.”

Michael smiled at her then sat two steps above her and Luke. “Ask away.”

“You said you’re Lewi’s best friend,” she said, raising her eyebrows while waiting for confirmation.

“I did say that,” Michael said with a nod.

Luke would definitely admit that he enjoyed watching the exchange in front of him. It was interesting to watch Zoe challenge how straightforward Michael was. He half expected Michael to ask the child to get to the point already but was surprised at Michael’s patience.

In what seemed like a disappointed gesture, Zoe added a long sigh. “You’re going to marry Lewi, are you?” she asked.

The sudden silence was enough confirmation that the question had surprised them both. They haven’t even talked about marriage in detail and they weren’t exactly expecting to discuss and explain marriage to Luke’s little cousin that day, no.

“What made you think that?” Michael asked and Luke was glad that he did because he was sure he wouldn’t be able to construct a proper sentence at that time.

Zoe groaned then stood up. “Because I keep hearing that!” she said, looking a little too distraught for a kid talking about marriage. “People on the TV keep saying you should marry your best friend. Sometimes I hear people in the streets say that too. Then one time I heard mum say to her friend that she wished she married her best friend instead. What’s the big deal?”

As much as Luke picked up more than his cousin’s exasperation, he decided to think about his aunt’s statement after they’ve calmed Zoe down. “Do you think it’s not a good idea?” he asked, trying to pick his words carefully. It was crucial they don’t infuriate Zoe any further.

“It’s not gonna be special anymore if everyone’s doing it,” she said with a pout. Luke had half a mind of taking a video of her to let her watch in the future. It would be interesting to see Zoe’s reaction to her younger self.

“No two best friends are the same, Zo,” was Luke’s defense.

“What if I wanna marry my enemy?” she asked and seriously, how many soap operas was she exposed to? Children weren’t normally concerned about marriage until they’ve been talked to about it. He needs to speak to his aunt about a bunch of things as soon as possible.

Before he could respond, Michael’s laughter cut him off. He grinned at Luke then looked back at Zoe. “That’s fine, you know,” he said as soon as his laughter died down.

“Really?”

“Of course,” Michael said, softly patting Zoe’s head. “I’m pretty sure I want to marry my enemy as well.”

At Michael’s statement, the cousins looked at Michael at the same time. The only difference was that Zoe had surprise in hers and there was disbelief in Luke’s. At that moment, Luke was already debating whether or not Michael was gonna get an earful from him before they went to bed.

Out of all the questions she could ask, she had to ask Michael if Luke knew who his enemy was. With a shit-eating grin, Michael winked at Luke. “Luke is very, very close to him. They’re practically the same person.”

If it wasn’t for their audience, he would have punched Michael’s arm already.

“Is your enemy Lewi’s best friend, too?”

Michael nodded. “Sometimes, I think.”

“Okay, I’m good now,” she said before walking away from the couple once again.

“Why the hell did you say that?” Luke whisper-yelled, gently shoving Michael away as soon as Zoe had stepped outside.

“First of all, ouch,” Michael said, feigning hurt as he rubbed his arm. “Also, where did the clingy, cuddly Luke from minutes ago went?”

Luke’s eyes narrowed to slits as his jaw clenched. “He left just after you practically gave us away to a grade-schooler.”

Michael rolled his eyes, almost an involuntary action at this point. “Yeah, because she’ll immediately pick up ‘I’m fucking your cousin, we’re in love, and we’ve talked about marriage in passing.’”

“She watches interviews, Michael. It won’t take her a long time before she figures out you were talking about me,” Luke said, crossing his arms. “And, yeah, okay, it makes it easier for us if she came in and said ‘Lewi’s marrying Michael!’ but I wanna be the one to tell mum.”

With open arms, Michael beckoned Luke to move closer to him. Luke settled himself against Michael’s chest without hesitation. “In five weeks, we’re going to tell our families, okay? They won’t find out today but in five weeks time. Then Liz will be thrilled because wow, you weren’t single at all since you left home. She’ll cook us a large dinner and it will be amazing and then Jack can finally tease us openly because I know he’s been dying to do that for so long. Next, the whole world will know my love for you. Then after quite some time, someone will propose then next, obviously, is marriage, and then when the band hype settles a bit, we’ll adopt an army of children.”

It was an ideal picture that Michael was trying to paint and Luke knew it might not play out that way, as much as both of them wanted it to, but it was always a nice thought. “An army?” Luke asked, muffled as he pressed closer to Michael.

“Duh,” Michael started, wrapping his arms tighter around Luke. “Who will fend for your honor once I’m weak and wrinkly?”

Luke chuckled, being grateful that no one has interrupted their moment. Being around Calum and Ashton almost every day, they’ve been used to cutting short anything similar to their current situation.

“You’re actually comparing yourself to an army of children now?” Luke teased, kissing Michael’s clothed shoulder before standing up. “You do punch like a 7-year old sometimes, so I guess that’s understandable.”

“Fuck off, Hemmings. Go outside and entertain guests. They’ve been waiting to see you for months and I’ve reached my quota of your presence so go, proceed to the exit.”

Michael’s an idiot but he’s an idiot that Luke loves so all he did was shake his head while pulling Michael to stand up. “You’re coming with me, smartass. You wanted to leave my room so you’re coming outside with me.”

*

It never really occurred to Luke that his family was quite large until they were all sat in the incredibly long table set up in the backyard and Michael already lost count of how many people came to talk to him. Michael probably remembers around 10 names, including his and Luke’s immediate family’s, and Luke’s noticed he’s been avoiding calling anyone by their name.

When Michael still wasn’t sat next to him and he noticed that another seat was empty, he looked around for a while until he saw Michael along with one of his cousins sat on a log his father placed in their backyard on a whim. He smiled to himself, happy that after quite a few conversations, Michael seemed pretty comfortable with this one.

He pushed his chair back and walked over to them so he could call them to the table. He knew Liz would be out with the last dish in a few minutes.

“Michael, Viv, dinner’s almost ready, they’re calling everyone to the table,” he said as soon as he knew they’d hear him.

Vivianne was the first to look up at him, looking like a deer caught in headlights. “Great, awesome, I’m famished, I should go find a seat. It was nice talking to you, Michael. See you soon, yeah?” she said in a hurry, almost sprinting to get to the table.

“Well, it’s comforting to see the awkwardness runs in the family,” Michael teased. “She was okay a few seconds ago, though.”

Of course, Michael wouldn’t get it. It took Luke about half a dozen times before Michael got the hint that he was interested. Sometimes it made Luke furious how Michael doesn’t ward off any unwanted attention but he knew reacting about it wasn’t necessary.

Normally, anyone flirting with Michael would piss him off but with Vivianne, Luke found the situation amusing.

“‘See you soon’?” Luke asked, raising an eyebrow. “What did you two talk about? You going on a date with my cousin?”

“Ha ha.” Michael shrugged. “She wanted me to teach her some drums, which I don’t understand because she knows Ashton exists. Said she wanted to learn an instrument to add to her CV,” Michael said, standing up to proceed walking to the table with Luke.

He decided to keep it to himself that Vivianne didn’t need to have _plays an instrument_ added to her list of special skills when she always wanted to become an architect.

Luke also kept to himself how there would be questions asked left and right. He wanted to see how things would play out, especially knowing his aunts were relentless when it came to asking questions bordering invasive. With Michael with him, he knew he wouldn’t be the sole target.

Before they even got to sit down, Luke already caught Zoe’s mother looking at the both of them.

“What brings you here, Michael?” she asked as soon as Luke’s butt hit the chair. “You know this is a family dinner, right?”

Okay, rude.

Luke wasn’t expecting that kind of hostility since Michael hadn’t even shown any form of obscene behavior. He could even confirm it was the best Michael has behaved in months.

“Luke didn’t tell me about _this_ so I thought he’d be free today and would wanna hang out for a bit,” Michael started, reaching to his side to place his hand on Luke’s thigh, most likely for comfort. “I was supposed to leave when I saw he was preoccupied, but Liz insisted I stay.”

“I did,” Liz piped up, looking at his aunt with what almost looked like a glare. “And he’s always welcome for dinner, Judy. He’s _family_.”

Seated beside his aunt, Luke could see Zoe smiling wide. She probably wanted to say something in Michael’s defense but was afraid of her mother.

The hand on Luke’s thigh felt more relaxed and Luke was glad Liz’s motherly instinct came in. He can see the grateful smile Michael had as he bent his head to hide his face. His gaze shifted to Vivianne and he wanted to coo at how she was looking at Michael. He almost felt bad about crushing her when she finds out about them.

Everyone ate in silence for a few minutes, with little to almost no chatter amongst the relatives. From time to time, Luke could feel people’s eyes pointed in his direction and he knew they were all looking at Michael.

“I feel like a zoo animal,” Michael muttered, nudging Luke’s feet with his own. “Can they stop looking at me?”

“I’m sorry, this was such a bad idea,” Luke whispered back, elbowing Michael’s arm softly. “You can leave right after dessert.”

When Luke looked up, he saw Jack looking at him. After gesturing for Luke to follow him, he stood up and went inside the house.

“I don’t know what’s going on,” Jack said when Luke got in the house. “But you can’t let him leave after we finish eating,” he added.

“You heard that?”

“Only because I was trying to listen,” Jack admitted. “But seriously, I have a feeling you planned this.”

Jack already knew so really, it would be pointless to not tell him. “Thought Michael could have dinner with us so we could see what he’s like with the family,” he explained.

“You know even if _they_ don’t like him, mum and dad practically already approves of him, yeah?”

Luke nodded. “I know, just wanted to see, that’s all.”

“He seems to be doing a pretty good job wooing them, though.”

Luke scoffed. “Yeah, Aunt Judy thinks he’s such a delight she didn’t want him to have dinner with us.” Luke turned his head to look at the backyard, already wanting to go back in fear that Michael was already being bombarded with questions. “I should go back or else he’ll be eaten alive.”

As soon as he pulled his chair back to sit down again, his aunts turned to look at him. “Good to have you back on the table, Luke. We were just asking Michael here how he manages being a musician,” Mary, another of his aunts said, probably with the same agenda as his aunt Judy.

“How he manages being a -- We’re on the same band and you know I’m doing okay,” Luke said, already starting to feel his blood boil.

His aunt shook her head. “But you’re the front man, it’s easier for you.”

Luke raised his eyebrows in surprise, knowing he had reminded his relatives how he hated being compared to his bandmates. He also knew he said that mentioning he was the _front man_ was another red flag.

“What does that mean?” Luke asked and he could feel Michael holding his hand and rubbing the back of it to try and calm him down.

“We’re just saying, you get _all_ the attention,” Judy said, slightly raising her hands defensively. “We doubt name dropping would work on Michael.”

It was a good thing Michael answered before he did because he knew what he wanted to say would get him into so much trouble. “With all due respect, I don’t think that concerns you in any way. Although, I don’t exactly _need_ to name drop when I’m already quite satisfied with my love life,” Michael said, whispering 'unlike you, apparently' just enough for Luke to hear.

“Single by choice?” Mary asked.

Luke didn’t even have to look at Michael to know he was smirking, he could practically hear it in his voice. “In a serious relationship, actually.” When Luke finally looked at Michael, there was a triumphant glint in his eyes. He expected that answer from his boyfriend, really, Michael wasn’t one to keep quiet when it came to their relationship.

Michael’s answer effectively kept his aunts quiet for a while and he was convinced the torture was close to being over.

...except Zoe had to say something. “Michael’s getting married!” she exclaimed, catching everyone’s attention.

“He is?” Liz asked and Luke was already screaming internally. He just knew his mother would figure it out if Zoe continued to talk.

“Yeah!” Zoe said with a nod.

Luke made a quick scan around the table, trying to gauge his relatives’ reactions to what Zoe said. Most of them looked indifferent, given Michael was still a stranger to them. Vivianne looked a bit disappointed. His aunts were clearly surprised. Although, the most important reaction was from his parents. Andy and Liz looked interested in the topic, most likely already thinking of questions to ask when they get Michael alone.

“Why do you say that, Zoe?” Liz asked again, her eyes shifting to Zoe and then back to Luke and Michael.

Zoe giggled as she placed her utensils down. “He told me a while ago,” she started. Luke knew she was about to say more and he should’ve prevented it but he didn’t have the heart to cut his cousin off. “He even said I could marry my enemy because he’s marrying his.”

The gears seemed to start working in Liz and Andy’s heads and in the next moment, they were looking at Luke and Michael with wide eyes. Luke could feel the sweat on his nape, making him shiver when the wind blew. After seeing his parents’ reactions, he tried his hardest to not look back at them. He kept denying to himself that his parents now know.

“I think your parents figured it out,” Michael whispered and Luke knew that but he was hoping it wouldn’t be verbalized.

Knowing his mother, Liz was probably ready to let everyone leave so she could talk to them immediately.

Everyone fell quiet after that, the only thing that could be heard was the scraping of metal against the plates. Luke’s thoughts were racing as it was his parents’ turn to avoid looking at them once they took their eyes off of them a while ago.

He should have just wished what Michael said while they were on the stairs came true.

*

Soon enough, people were starting to leave. Luke had instructed Michael to go to his room so he could rest. Michael was reluctant but Luke knew it was better for Michael to be out of his mother’s sight for a while.

When the last group of his relatives left, he already felt Liz’s gaze on the back of his head as soon as the door closed.

“I’m going to fix up in here. You two come back down in an hour then we’ll talk,” she said, before disappearing into the kitchen to wash the dishes. He would’ve volunteered to help but the need for Michael’s comfort weighed more.

As soon as he reached his room, he plopped himself face down beside Michael. After a few seconds, he felt Michael’s hand gently rubbing his back.

He didn’t expect for things to turn out the way they did. It would have gone well if Michael didn’t tell Zoe anything about marrying his enemy and if Zoe had kept quiet. He couldn’t blame either of them, though. Come to think of it, for how long they’ve hidden it, it was inevitable for their parents to figure out at that point.

“Come here,” Michael said, squeezing Luke’s shoulder, inviting him to rest against his chest. “That wasn’t so bad,” he added once Luke was pressed against him, kissing the top of his head.

Michael was right, it wasn’t so bad but Luke didn’t want to talk about that. Choosing to not focus their conversation on what was about to happen, Luke shifted the conversation elsewhere. “Vivianne was flirting with you,” he said, lacing his fingers with Michael’s.

“She was?” Michael asked, followed by a chuckle. “And here I thought she genuinely wanted to learn drums from me.”

“Always your blind spot,” Luke muttered, pressing himself closer to Michael even if it was almost impossible at that point. “Come on, that’s like a given when you ask someone to teach you to play drums. You just wanna sit on their lap and like, have them guide your hands and shit.”

The statement caused Michael to fall into a fit of laughter then he hummed after. “Too bad I have to cancel her appointment.” Michael pulled their hands up and kissed the back of Luke’s hand. “Want me to teach _you_ drums, then?” he teased, wiggling his eyebrows.

Luke swung his leg to bracket Michael’s hips then he kept his hands on Michael’s shoulders to push him back. “I can think of better things we can do while I’m sat on your lap,” he said before leaning down to capture Michael’s lips with his own.

They kissed for a while, forgetting the dilemma on hand and just enjoying the feeling of being together.

It passed Luke’s mind that it didn’t matter that his parents found out ahead of time or that they didn’t get to do it the way they wanted. The only thing that mattered was that after they talk to Liz and Andy, everything will follow. After they’ve informed their families, they’ll tell their friends, entourage, and then everyone else.

The hardest thing, however, was telling their management. Luke could only hope they’ll focus on how well they’ve hidden their relationship and that would be it. He would be foolish to think that’d be the case. It was a given that it would be complicated but it was fine as long as he’ll go through it with Michael.

It was a few minutes after an hour passed when his phone lit up and alerted him of a text message. When he picked it up, he was surprised to see that it was from his mother.

[ _Received_ ] You two can come down, now

“Mum texted me,” Luke said, turning his phone to show the message to Michael.

Michael laughed softly and then gently pushed Luke off of him. “Liz is getting with the times, I’m proud,” he said, pulling Luke up.

“Love you,” Luke said, kissing Michael’s forehead. He just wanted to say it, reminding Michael from time to time that he does.

“Nope, no, kiss me on the lips or I’m not saying it back,” Michael said with a pout, crossing his arms.

Luke shook his head before opening the door and pulling Michael out. “It’s obvious that you do anyway, so I don’t need to hear it,” Luke teased. “Also, we don’t want to keep mum, and probably dad, waiting,” he added, starting to walk faster.

As expected, Liz and Andy were waiting for them in the dining room, facing the entrance.

“Marriage is such a huge step,” Andy said but he wasn’t directly looking at Luke and Michael.

It surprised Luke at how straightforward the conversation was going. He thought his parents would start with saying that they’re proud of him or just ask why they didn’t know about Michael being his boyfriend sooner. Being reprimanded about marriage wasn’t how he expected to start talking to his parents about his relationship.

“It’s not like we’re getting married tomorrow,” was what Luke chose to respond with. With Michael’s hand still in his, he pulled the older man to sit down.

“We know that, honey,” Liz said and at least she was looking at Luke. “We’re just reminding you.”

Luke groaned in exasperation, leaning his head down to rest on the table. “There are no plans on getting married in the next couple of years if that’s what you wanna know.”

“Then after that?”

“He and I will talk about it. Seriously, we’ve only mentioned getting married _someday_. We’re way too young to be thinking about details right now,” Luke said. “Right, Michael?” he asked, turning his head to look at Michael.

At least Michael didn’t look fazed or nervous. In response, he just nodded to Luke’s statement with an encouraging smile.

“Did you think you couldn’t tell us about you two?” Liz asked, concern present in her eyes.

Quick to respond, Luke replied with a resounding ‘no’. “We wanted to keep it to ourselves for a while, see if it would last before everyone makes a big deal out of it.”

“Does anyone know?” Liz asked again and to Luke, it sounded like: _did someone know before I did?_  

He knew he shouldn’t tell her that Jack had known for a while, it could possibly bring her mood down. She was always the first person Luke told stories to so he knew she should’ve been the first one to know about him and Michael. Although, he can’t really change that fact now.

“Calum and Ashton,” Michael answered. “And only because we’re with them every day and it would be useless to try and keep it from them. Calum can read me like a book and Ashton has been Luke’s honorary big bro, so keeping secrets from them would be impossible.”

Liz nodded in understanding. “Well,” she started, smiling at Michael. “How about we meet you for the first time as Luke’s boyfriend?” she asked, nudging Andy to look at them. Luke released a sigh of relief when he saw Andy smiling as well.

Michael stood up and walked over to Liz and Andy. “Good evening, Mr. and Mrs. Hemmings. I’m Michael Clifford and I’m dating your son,” he said, stretching his hand out for the elder Hemmings’ to shake.

Andy shook his hand. “Please, call us Andy and Liz,” he said. “We didn’t even know Luke had a boyfriend,” he added and luckily there was no heat to his words.

“It’s not something we publicize,” Michael said as he walked back to his seat beside Luke. “We didn’t want our relationship to be another thing the media can scrutinize.”

“We understand that,” Andy said with a nod then he turned to face Luke. “But you could’ve told us about it, we’re your parents.”

“It wasn’t like I didn’t want to tell you,” Luke said with a shrug. “I wanted to tell you about it like a thousand times in the past five years.”

It was almost out of a cartoon how Liz and Andy’s eyes grew in size at what Luke said. Right, they still haven’t disclosed how long they’ve been together.

“What?” Andy asked the same time Liz said, “Five years?!”

“ _Almost_ five years,” Michael said but they both knew it wasn’t going to help their case.

Liz shook her head and raised her hand, then she took out her phone. “I’m calling Karen so she and Daryl can come over and all of us are going to talk about this,” she said before she pressed her phone against her ear.

It was a good thing Liz took the initiative in calling the Cliffords because Luke almost forgot they were supposed to be included.

His train of thought was broken when he felt Michael’s chin on his shoulder. “Love you too,” Michael finally said, leaving a kiss on Luke’s cheek.

Just as he looked back up at his parents, Andy was smiling at them and Liz was waiting for Karen to pick up, but Luke could see a little smile on her.

“Karen, hi! Sorry if I’m bothering you but something happened,” Liz said, standing up and then proceeding to pace behind her husband.

Leave it to his mother to make it sound more dramatic than it is.

There was no doubt in his mind that his parents wouldn't be mad at him, he also knew they wouldn't be disappointed. He was probably worrying for the sake of worrying. Either way, he knew it would go okay.

Focusing his attention on his mother, it seemed that Karen asked for Liz to elaborate since she spoke again. “Your son wants to marry mine.”

Luke groaned and rested his head on the table again, resulting in a soft thud. Maybe this was what he was worried about. Since the topic was already open, they'd probably discuss it further but at that point, he doesn't want to hear anything related to marriage in the next few days.

It was _definitely_ going to be a long night _._

**Author's Note:**

> Part 3???
> 
> Come say hi on [tumblr](http://thnksfrthmxn.tumblr.com)!


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